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PROVINCES of FRANCE

France is traditionally divided into roughly 22 ancient provinces, although modern government, mail delivery, and auto registrations are now based on 95 departmental regions. Each is administered by a general council with a Préfet who works from a Préfecture. Départements are numbered in alphabetical order (see list below), and the two first digits in a French postal code correspond to the number of the département. The two last digits of a French-registered car also correspond to the number of the département in which the car owner resides.

The total area of France covers 551,100 km2 (appr. 180,000 sq. miles - almost the size of Texas), to which are added 8 overseas departments and territories. Boasting 58 million inhabitants (10 million in the Paris region alone), France's 36,673 towns and villages are linked by 964,356 km (599,240 miles) of roads and 31,940 km (19,847 miles) of railways.

With four broad and distinct climactic zones, and geography ranging from verdant valleys to snow-capped mountains, the many faces of France's provinces provide such contrasts in language and culture, architecture and cuisine, ancient history and traditional dress, that a visitor may get the impression they have discovered different countries within this one nation.